True Colors
by Fictionista 48
Summary: Two acts of kindness bring out Kensi and Deeks' true colors. Literally.


**Happy Easter to those who celebrate. For everyone else, Happy Sunday. I thought I'd share this little bit of Densi happiness to celebrate the day. Review if you feel moved to do so. Reviews are better than chocolate bunnies. And if you're so inclined, you can now follow me on Twitter Fictionista48. Enjoy!**

They stand in line at a grocery store, waiting to pay for the candy bars Kensi insisted she couldn't live without. He needs caffeine much more than sugar right now, but a sugar-free Kensi is a cranky, snarky Kensi, so he agreed to stop for chocolate before coffee. In line just ahead of them is a tired looking young blonde woman and a little girl. The child can't be more than six, blonde haired and blue-eyed. She smiles shyly at Deeks, then obviously catches sight of the Easter display off to the side, over his shoulder.

"Mommy, we need dye! And an Easter basket!"

The woman looks down at the little girl. "Not now, baby."

"But Easter is day after tomorrow! We have to get it now."

"Not today, Sarah. I'm already in line."

The little girl tugs at her mother's hand. "It's right there. I can go get it. You can still see me right there. See? Nobody'll even steal me," she says, pointing to the left of Deeks.

Deeks watches the woman lean down and speak softly, as not to be overheard. "Sarah, I can't. We don't have any money. I only have my food stamp card. I'm sorry, baby."

"We can't dye eggs tomorrow night?" Sarah asks, nearly in tears.

The woman shakes her head sadly. "I'm really sorry, honey. I wish we could."

Deeks sees the pain and disappointment on the little girl's face. He remembers it well, from his own childhood. He steps out of line and walks over to the Easter display, grabbing a box of egg dye, a basket, and a chocolate bunny.

"Deeks, what are you doing?"

He nods toward the little girl and her mom, before selecting a few more items from the display, including a big, soft, pink stuffed bunny, perfect for hugging. He gets back in line beside Kensi, and pulls out his credit card. As soon as the woman finishes paying for her groceries, he taps her shoulder.

She turns around, and he sees dark circles beneath tired blue eyes. She reminds him of his mother back when he was little. "Yes?"

"Your daughter's adorable," he says, then lowers his voice. "I heard your conversation. I'm sorry for eavesdropping, but I want you to have this." He gives his credit card to the cashier, and hands the bag of Easter goodies to the young mother, pulling out the pink rabbit to hand to her daughter. "Here, sweetie. Happy Easter."

"Oh, I…I couldn't. I…"

He smiles, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Sure you can." He squats down eye level with the little girl. "You have a happy Easter, okay, Sarah?"

"What do you say to the nice man, Sarah?"

"Thank you." She nods, looking past him, up at Kensi. "Your girlfriend is really pretty."

Deeks smiles. "Not as pretty as you," he says in a hushed tone.

"You're gonna make her mad," says Sarah, smiling.

"Nah, she's got chocolate. She's good." He looks up over his shoulder and winks at his partner, who has a soft smile on her face. "You take good care of that bunny, okay, sweetie?"

She nods.

"What are you gonna name her?"

"What's your girlfriend's name?" Sarah asks, looking up past Deeks.

"Her name is Kensi."

"Then I'm naming her Kensi."

"You take good care of her, okay? She's special."

Sarah nods, then hugs him around the neck and whispers, "Thank you."

Deeks stands, and the girl's mother looks at him with teary eyes. "Thank you. You didn't have to do that."

"She deserves to have a happy Easter. Make sure you eat some of that chocolate, too, okay?"

The woman smiles. "Okay. Have a good Easter, both of you. C'mon, baby, it's time to go."

Sarah smiles up at them and waves. "Bye, Kensi. Bye…what's your name?"

"Marty."

"Bye, Marty. Thank you."

He smiles back at her, and watches them walk outside, completely overtaken by memories.

Kensi touches his arm, bringing him back. "That was…that was amazing."

"Nah. You'd have done the same."

"That little girl is going to have Easter because of you," she says as they walk out into the sunshine. "She'll never forget you. That rabbit will be with her forever. It'll end up in a college dorm room with her someday."

He smiles. "Her Kensi bunny."

She chuckles. "Yeah."

They climb into Kensi's SRX and Deeks stares out the window, sucked back in time to his own miserable childhood. He remembers standing in the grocery store with his own tired, overwhelmed mother, begging her for candy and egg dye. Hearing her say no, that they can't afford it. The truth of it was, it took away from his dad's booze money.

Kensi lays a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, you okay over there, partner?"

"Yeah. I'm good," he says, trying to smile. He can't quite pull it off. "I just feel bad for them."

"At least you helped them though, right?"

"Yeah."

"There's something else, isn't there?"

He looks at his lap, trying to decide if he wants to talk about it. Then he looks over at Kensi, at the concern in her dark eyes, and he gives in. "Yeah. They remind me of my mom and me. I _was_ that little girl. I know what it feels like to want those little stupid kid things, like Halloween costumes and egg dye, and not be able to have them. All the simple things other kids had, that were totally out of my reach."

She frowns. "Your family didn't celebrate anything?"

"No. At least not very well. Holidays were pretty much a disaster at my house."

She looks at him disbelievingly. "You didn't dye eggs as a kid?"

He can't keep the disgust out of his voice. "My dad wouldn't let us buy things like baskets or candy or egg dye. Took away from his booze money."

Her eyebrows rise, and her mouth drops open. "You _never _dyed eggs?"

He feels a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. "Once. I gathered up every Kool-Aide packet and box of Jell-O in the house, and dyed eggs with those. It worked, too."

Kensi smiles at his ingenuity. "Seriously? You dyed eggs with Kool-Aide?"

"Yep," he beams. "Got my ass beat real good for it, too. But it worked."

The smiled fades from her face. "That's awful, Deeks. I'm sorry."

He shrugs. "Eh. It was what it was, you know?"

"Childhood shouldn't be that way."

"Exactly why I did what I did a little while ago. I didn't want to see that little girl miss out on that part of childhood. I mean, dying eggs…it shouldn't be a damned luxury, you know?"

She smiles sadly at him. "No, it shouldn't. Ready for coffee? I'll buy."

He smiles back, feeling sad with the nostalgia, and happy that he's made a small difference. "Yep, let's go."

* * *

She's spent the past twenty-four hours thinking about what Deeks said after they'd left the grocery store. She can't imagine it, not having holidays. Until her father died, she'd had amazing holidays. Even if he was deployed overseas and couldn't be with her, he made sure she had the best of everything a child could ask for. Christmas gifts, Halloween costumes, Easter Baskets filled to overflowing with candy and treats. She can't imagine being a little child denied of those simple treasures. It makes her heart hurt to think that Deeks, the kindest, most thoughtful, most light-hearted man she's ever met could have grown up that way.

She called him earlier and asked if he wanted to come over for pizza and a movie. Tomorrow is Easter Sunday, and since it's a quiet kind of weekend, neither has any plans. He agreed without hesitation, and her stomach flutters slightly as she waits for him to get here. Any other Saturday night, she'd be unaffected by a visit from her partner. But tonight she has something other than pizza, beer and a movie on the agenda. She looks around, hoping she isn't overstepping some invisible boundary between them. A knock sounds at the door, and her pulse quickens, causing butterflies to arise in her stomach.

"Hey, Kens," he says, standing outside. He has a six-pack of beer in one hand and a paper bag in the other. "You gonna let me in?"

She opens the door wider and stands aside, ushering him in. "Yeah. Sorry. Just hand me that stuff."

"I know where the kitchen is, Kens. I can get it," he says with a smile.

"I know, but…hang on a sec, okay?" She holds out her hand.

"I've seen the kitchen wrecked before. It's no big deal."

"It's not that. Just go with it, okay? Please?" She smiles pleadingly, hoping he just agrees.

"You okay? You're acting weird…er."

"Ha, ha. I'll be right back. Give me that stuff."

"You can have the beer. I'm keeping the bag."

"Okay, now who's acting weird?" she says, taking the beer to the fridge. "You want one of these now?"

"Sure. You order the pizza yet?"

"No, I thought we'd wait a bit." She takes two beers out of the pack, and puts the rest in the fridge before looking around nervously. She walks back into the living room and hands Deeks a beer, sitting beside him on the couch. "What's in the bag?"

He smiles, holding it out of her reach. "I don't know…maybe nothing. Maybe something."

She smiles. "Something for me?"

He shrugs noncommittally. "Could be."

She smiles wider. "Could it be chocolate, by chance?"

"Maybe." He smiles and hands it over. "Don't make fun of me, though."

She takes the bag. "Why would I make fun of you? Aside from the obvious reasons."

He makes a move for the bag. "I can always take it back."

She snatches it from his reach. "Don't you dare." Peering inside, she sees a dark chocolate Easter bunny. For reasons she can't quite grasp, it chokes her up a bit.

"It won't bite, Kens," he says with a chuckle.

She swallows back the lump in her throat, and pulls the candy out of the bag. "Thanks, Deeks. This is really sweet. No one's gotten me a chocolate bunny since…" She purses her lips together and takes a breath.

He places a hand on her arm. "Since your dad."

She nods. "Yeah. Then."

"Well, I know you and chocolate, so…you know." He's obviously trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah. Thanks."

He shoves her playfully, and smiles. "So, what's the plan, Stan? Pizza and a movie or two?"

"Actually, I have something for you, too," she says, her heart thudding.

"Yeah? What might that be?"

"Come here." She takes his hand and pulls him up.

He smiles widely. "You wouldn't be leading me to the bedroom, would you, Fern?"

She snatches her hand from his, and punches his arm. "In your dreams, maybe. No, we're going to the kitchen."

His smile only gets bigger. "Oh, adventurous are we?" The comment earns him another fist to the bicep. "Ow! You know, that's no way to treat a man who just gave you chocolate."

She pushes him into the kitchen and watches his eyes grow wide. Her heart threatens to pound out of her chest awaiting his reaction to the display of eggs, cups, and boxes of colorful dye spread across the counter.

He looks around, mouth dropping open. Then he looks at Kensi.

She smiles nervously. "I, uh…I thought that since you never got to do this as a kid, maybe you'd want to do it now."

He stares at it all, then turns to her. He swallows, and then looks back to the eggs and dye, then back at her. "Kens…I can't believe you've done all this."

She shrugs. "You said you never got to experience this. That every kid should. I just…I wanted you to experience it."

He smiles, his eyes shimmering with the threat of tears. "Thanks, partner," he whispers. He reaches for her, and pulls her into his arms. "This means a lot."

She isn't sure what she expected, but it wasn't this. They touch a lot, but he's never done this, and it's strange and awkward and sort of wonderful. "You're welcome."

He pulls back with a huge smile on his face, obviously recovered from the emotion of a few seconds ago. "This is cool. But what are we gonna do with all these eggs when we're done?"

"Well, I thought maybe you might know of a family who could use them. Maybe someone from your soup kitchen."

He smiles. "Great idea. You know, under that tough, bad-ass façade, you've got a good heart, Kens."

"Shut up and start dying eggs, Deeks."

He beams at her. "Don't have to tell me twice." He jumps right in, reading directions, measuring vinegar, and stirring up the dye. He looks like an oversized kid. The smile on his face is priceless.

"You probably want to be careful not to get that on your clothes. Unless you like tie-dyed shirts."

"Not particularly," he says, eyeing the old white tee she's wearing. "But you might look good in one." He smiles deviously and dips his fingers into a cup of dye and flips them at her, effectively spraying the front of her shirt with bright blue droplets.

Her eyes widen and her mouth drops open. "Deeks!"

He laughs, dodging a shove, and dipping his fingers into another cup of dye. This time it's red that splatters across the white fabric covering her belly and the rise of her breasts, followed by green and orange. He's laughing, moving quickly, ducking and dodging her fruitless advances. "Oh, partner, you're gonna have to do better than that."

She finally gives up and dips her own fingers into the purple and flings the brilliant liquid his way. It hits home, staining his light gray t-shirt in a hundred tiny spots. Before it can even soak in completely, she's flinging green dye at him, then yellow and red. As she launches her counterattack, she dips and dodges his attempts at retribution. Within minutes, both are wearing colors that would rival a Grateful Dead festival.

"Deeks, you are so dead," she exclaims, as he flips blue dye across her face.

He laughs until she makes a move to pick up the whole cup of purple. "Oh, no. Don't you even think about it!" He grabs her around the waist and yanks her away from the dye cups. He's laughing as she struggles, holding her tightly against him.

"Damn it, Deeks! You started this!" She wants to sound angry, but it's impossible. She laughs even as she says the words, and even though she struggles, she isn't trying very hard. Laughter has her weak and pliant, and she doesn't even mind. And then, he loosens his grip on her, letting his linked hands slip down to her lower back, keeping her body pulled comfortably against his. She loops her arms around his neck and looks up into his deep blue eyes. Tiny spots of dye are splattered across his face, and she reaches to touch them.

He stares back down at her, and moves his fingers to her cheek, then her lips. "Dye."

She's caught in his gaze, caught up in his touch, his feel, the way he smells. Her words are barely a breath. "You, too."

He runs a fingertip along her lower lip, then cups her face and closes the increasingly small space between them. Before she can breathe, his mouth is on hers, his lips soft and gentle against her own. She opens her mouth to suck in a breath, and his tongue meets hers, eliciting a soft whimper. They share a long, deep kiss, completely lost in one another. When he draws back, she's breathless.

He smiles. "You had dye on your lips."

"Yeah? I think you missed a spot."

"I think you're right," he says, pulling her closer, enveloping her mouth with his.

She threads her fingers into his hair, savoring the feel of it, of him, of his kiss. She never imagined they would end up this way. Tonight was meant to be an innocent gesture of friendship. To give him something he's never had. Instead, he's giving her something she hadn't realized she needed.

He pulls back; staring down into her eyes, and strokes a strand of hair from her face. "You have dye on your eyelids." He leans forward and kisses each one softly.

"You have dye on yours, too. And your nose, and your cheek." She punctuates each with a kiss on each place mentioned.

His eyes are half-closed with passion. "Your jaw…" Another kiss. "Your neck…" A kiss and a gentle nibble. "Right here…" He sucks lightly at the juncture of neck and shoulder, sending a shiver up her spine.

Her breath rushes out at the sensations, leaving her senseless. She reciprocates, taking his face in her hands. "Your nose…" She places a kiss on the tip. "Your cheekbone…" Another light kiss above his scruff. "Your lower lip…" She breathes against it before nipping it softly, following with a gentle kiss. He stops her where she is with a hand cupping the back of her head, holding her in place, He kisses her passionately until they're both breathless.

He smiles down at her. "I think that dye may have soaked through," he says seductively, running a finger along a line of splatters on her shirt, just below her collarbones.

"Yours, too, probably."

His eyes are dark with want as he slowly lifts the hem of her shirt to expose the taut skin of her belly. She holds her breath as he runs a fingertip across her skin, gooseflesh rising in its wake. His voice is nothing more than a whisper. "I can see your true colors, Fern."

She struggles for breath, trying to reign herself in. "We're uh…we're supposed to be dying eggs, Deeks."

"Uh huh." He bends to kiss her stomach. "This is more fun, yeah?"

A tremor runs through her as his tongue slips along a line of dye spots. She whimpers and fists her hands in his hair. "Deeks…the eggs…we…"

He stops, letting her shirt fall back into place. He straightens and runs his hand through his hair, smiling at her. "Eggs? Really?"

She swallows, trying hard to slow her galloping heart. "Well, you know…that's what I invited you here for."

He smiles and bends down, his breath tickling her neck deliciously. "Really?" he whispers. "Not for this?" He runs his tongue over the curve of her neck, smiling against her skin at the moan it elicits. "We can dye eggs, Kens. This can wait." He draws back and smiles, a mischievous little glint in his eye.

She swallows, fighting for control. "You made a mess all over my kitchen."

He smiles. "How can you tell?"

She rolls her eyes and shoves at his chest. "Ha, ha. I see how much you appreciate my acts of goodwill," she says.

He dips his head down and captures her lips. "I like your acts of goodwill very much. Make no mistake, Kens. This means everything to me." He presses his forehead to hers and gazes into her eyes.

"I'm glad." She pecks his lips softly, regaining her self-control. "Do you still want to do this?"

"Is that okay? I mean, I know we were just…"

She smiles and cups his cheek in her hand, her thumb drifting over the scruff. "It's okay. I wanted to give you something you've never had."

He gazes at her. "I've never had you."

The words suck the air from her lungs. She can't even respond.

He smiles, his voice seductive. "That dye might be hard to get off later." He runs a finger over a few blue spots on her forearm.

"We'll figure something out."

"Promise?"

She smiles. "Promise. Have your fun. We'll um…get the dye off later."

He smiles back like a kid on Christmas morning, turning back to the eggs. They dip them into the colors in silence for a few minutes, then she speaks without looking at him. "I'm really sorry about your childhood, Deeks. No kid should have to grow up without this," she says, referring to the egg dying.

He smiles over at her, his eyes crinkling softly at the corners. "It's never too late to have a happy childhood, Kens. Thanks for this. No one's ever done anything like this for me."

She looks up and smiles. "You're welcome."

Once all the eggs are dyed and drying, they stand back and take it all in. Kensi takes his hand and tugs a bit. "So, what did you think? Did dying Easter eggs live up to your expectations?"

He pulls her hand up to his lips and kisses it. "Even better than I imagined." He draws her against his chest and whispers, "Thank you," before dipping his head down to kiss her.

She opens her mouth and welcomes him, breathing in the scent of his cologne mixed with the dye and his own scent. She feels him move his hands over her body, resting them on her hips to pull her flush against him. His breath comes faster as their tongues tangle and she slips her hands beneath his shirt to stroke the warm skin of his back.

He pulls back fractionally and smiles, whispering against her lips. "I think there's dye back there."

"Yeah? I think we should check."

He pulls her toward the bedroom, leaving the colorful disaster to dry, like brilliant confetti scattered all over the floor and countertops. As Kensi glances back at it, she knows the spots will likely be permanent, but that's just fine. From now on, each time she sees those multi-colored spots adorning her kitchen, she'll think of this night and all it meant to both of them.

**End**

**I know some of you would have loved an M rated ending, but it is Easter, and although I'm no prude, it just seemed...wrong somehow. I hope you enjoyed it as is. **

**~E**


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